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I currently have a system running Windows 10 and Elementary OS (based on Ubuntu 18.04) in a dual boot configuration. The problem (more of an annoyance actually) is that Windows 10 uses Raid On and Ubuntu uses AHCI for the SATA operation, this means that I have to go into the bios and switch between those 2 modes every time that I'd like to boot up the other operating system.

So that got me thinking, could I use a script to reboot my system and switch the mode when it turns on again? A simple batch and sh script for both operating systems. If so, what would that script look like?

EDIT People seem to downvote this question because they do not understand the use case. Switching my Windows partition to AHCI would solve my problem, but that is not what I asked for (there are other threads covering this already...). I would like to know how to create an executable script to switch between AHCI and Raid. I feel like that is a reasonable question.

Bram Vanbilsen
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  • Why not make both operating systems use the same mode? – u1686_grawity Oct 21 '18 at 20:03
  • I read that you can't use "Raid On" on Elementary OS and I rather use that than AHCI. – Bram Vanbilsen Oct 21 '18 at 20:06
  • What advantage does the RAID mode have? – u1686_grawity Oct 21 '18 at 20:39
  • @grawity I have absolutely no idea, but there has to be a reason why it is the default on Windows right? – Bram Vanbilsen Oct 21 '18 at 21:16
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    It's not the default on Windows – it's the default in your BIOS firmware, and Windows has no choice but to accept whatever mode it was installed on. As for why it's the default in your firmware... 1) Windows XP didn't have AHCI drivers back in the day (although Windows 10 does for sure), and 2) manufacturers want to sell the RAID feature, whether it ends up being used or not. – u1686_grawity Oct 21 '18 at 21:37

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Windows can be switch from Raid On to AHCI. I bring below the procedure described in the article How to switch SATA controller driver from RAID to AHCI on Windows 10 without a reinstall. I suggest to take backups first, including an image backup of the Windows partition.

  1. Boot to Windows with your current SATA controller configuration
  2. Open Device Manager
  3. Expand Storage Controllers and identify the Intel SATA RAID Controller
  4. View properties of the identified controller
  5. On the Driver tab, click the Update driver… button
  6. Browse my computer…, Let me pick…
  7. Uncheck Show compatible hardware
  8. Select Microsoft as manufacturer
  9. Select Microsoft Storage Spaces Controller as model3
  10. Accept that Windows cannot confirm that this driver is compatible
  11. Save changes, reboot to BIOS and change RAID SATA Controller to AHCI
  12. Save changes and reboot normally, hopefully to Windows

An alternative solution that involves using bcdedit can be found in Switch Windows 10 from RAID/IDE to AHCI operation (although I like it less when grub is involved).

harrymc
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  • Thanks for that, although it is not exactly what I am looking for. What are the consequences of switching to AHCI for Windows? I mean, there has to be a reason why MS opted for Raid – Bram Vanbilsen Oct 21 '18 at 21:18
  • Again, Microsoft DIDN'T opted for RAID, the manufacturer did. NOT even default on Windows either as explained above. There are NO consequences of switching to AHCI. –  Oct 22 '18 at 00:12
  • Just so, the manufacturer decides in view of the devices attached, but in your case all devices support both modes. As far as performance goes, there isn't much (if any) difference between the two modes. Perhaps the default here was RAID because Windows is more common. – harrymc Oct 22 '18 at 07:57
  • You might find this interesting reading : link. – harrymc Oct 22 '18 at 10:00
  • Also: Intel Optane - See Intel response that no performance difference between RAID & AHCI. https://communities.intel.com/thread/121155 – oldfred Sep 17 '21 at 22:08
  • Well, this did not work, and has temporarily bricked the windows boot-up on my Dell desktop until I can figure out how to change the driver back to the way it was, as it won't even boot up in safe mode after changing the driver to Microsoft. – Carl Bradley Sep 17 '21 at 21:08